


Dirty (gym floor) Dancing

by brightsmile



Series: Dance Like Nobody is Watching [1]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: AU, Ballroom Dancing, M/M, harry wants to teach niall how to dance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-18
Updated: 2013-06-18
Packaged: 2017-12-15 09:55:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/848181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brightsmile/pseuds/brightsmile
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“I’m pretty sure your gym teacher mentioned something about participation being a big part of your grade. Wouldn’t want you to fail, now would we blondie?”</p><p>“Niall. My name’s Niall.”</p><p>Harry smiles before coming to a sudden stop smack dab in the center of the gym. “Alright then Niall, let’s see these supposed nonexistent dance skills of yours.”</p><p>Niall stares up at him blankly for a few second before blushing and realizing that oh wow, this guy is actually serious about dancing with him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dirty (gym floor) Dancing

 

Niall Horan knows something’s up the minute he sees the sign saying not to get changed taped to the locker room door.

 

“Hello class, today I’m excited to announce that we’re going to learn how to ballroom dance.”

 

_There it is._

 

The class lets out a collective groan, mumbling about their elderly gym teacher being old-fashioned and boring. A couple of the guys even stare longingly over at the cart of sport’s equipment shoved into the corner to make room for the makeshift dance floor.

 

However, Niall just shoves his hands into his pockets and toes at the dirty gym floor with the tip of his shoe.

 

Because, Niall Horan doesn’t dance.

 

Ever.

 

He’s just about to make his escape by following a group of students whispering about hiding out in the woods behind the school until class ends when out of the blue, a deep, velvety voice stops everyone in their tracks.

 

“Hello ladies and gentlemen, my name is Harry Styles and I will be your dance instructor for the day.”

 

Though Niall’s back is facing the owner of the voice, he doesn’t miss the way the eyes of the girls around him widen in awe before they break into little packs, giggling into each other’s ears without taking their eyes off the dance instructor.

 

Taking a deep breath, Niall turns around slowly, feeling his own eyes widen when they fell on the man standing only feet away from him.

 

He’s tall and dressed in all black, tanned hands clasped in front of him and pearly white teeth picking out between his smiling lips.

 

Niall’s gaze involuntarily travels up his body, from his scuffed brown boots to the tanned skin of his sinewy arms, resting for a second on the mass of chocolate curls falling across his forehead before lowering to the dazzling pair of emerald green eyes.

 

Which stare straight back at him, a single eyebrow lifting in question before Niall turns his face away, cheeks burning and heart pounding as “Harry” clears his throat before addressing the class for a second time.

 

“Now, I can tell by the looks on some of your faces that you think ballroom dancing is something lame that only your grandparents do.”

 

Many of the guys nod in agreement.

 

“However,” Harry continues, slowly walking amongst the students, “It’s not.”

 

He pauses in front of two girls clearly undressing him with their eyes, “Like many forms of dancing, it’s an intimate way for people to express themselves.”

 

He smiles at them briefly before walking away and Niall swear the one girl nearly faints, grabbing onto her friend’s arm as her chest heaves up and down.

 

“And to all of you young men standing here and thinking this type of dancing is gay or sissy-like, don’t forget that it’s the guy’s job to guide his lovely partner across the floor.”

 

Harry’s lips curl into a smile. “ _You’re_ in control.”

 

Niall tries not to roll his eyes when he sees a few of his male classmates smirking like perverts and waggling their eyebrows at one another.

 

“Yet, before we begin.” Harry rasps, eyes twinkling, “Everyone must find a partner.

 

Suddenly, there’s a mad dash as most of the girls in the class rush towards the more popular boys and Niall backs away until his back hits the wall, watching as everyone partners up.

 

He figures he’ll just wait until there’s one desperate girl left without a partner before he steps forwards and that hopefully, she’ll be so relieved that it won’t matter how awful of a dancer he is.

 

However, this plan is quickly destroyed right before Niall’s eyes when he realizes the male to female ratio of his class is not 50/50 as he had assumed as he is now left looking like a loser as the only kid without a partner.

 

Squeezing his eyes shut, he wills himself to become invisible as he listens to Harry give the first bit of instructions on correct body position and appropriate hand placement.

 

He hears the gym teacher fiddle around with an old boom box while Harry enthusiastically explains the basic steps of the dance and then there’s some old fashion music playing and the unmistakable squeaking sound of feet sliding across the gym floor, occasionally accompanied by tiny “ows” of girls getting their feet stepped on.

 

Niall peels his eyes open, preparing to bolt towards the exit to escape any further humiliation.

 

He’s just lifting his foot to take the first step when he abruptly spots the lanky figure striding towards him and freezes against the wall.

 

Niall quickly lowers his head and stares down at his shoes, too embarrassed to look directly at the dancing instructor when he comes to a stop in front of him.

 

“Hey.” Harry’s low voice murmurs after a few seconds of silence and Niall bites his lip, keeping his head down.

 

“Hi.”

 

 “I hate to be the bearer of bad new, but it looks like you’re the poor fellow who got stuck without a partner.”

 

Niall nods, raising his head a bit until he’s staring at the necklace hanging around the taller boy’s neck. “Yeah, I know. But it’s not really a problem,” he mumbles, finally raising his chin to make eye contact, “I wasn’t planning on dancing anyway.”

 

Harry’s eyebrows furrow, “Why?”

 

Niall feels his cheeks heat up. “Ican’tdance.” He whispers.

 

Harry’s lips quirk but he leans down until his face is level with Niall’s, “I’m sorry what?”

 

“I can’t dance.” Niall sighs, certain his face is now completely red.

 

The curly-haired boy’s face splits into a wide smile, “I’ll be the judge of that.”

 

Niall can only stare at him questioningly until the dance instructor is grabbing his wrist and tugging him away from the wall.

 

“What? No, really I…” Niall stutters, but Harry only laughs, tightening his grip when Niall tries to pull away.

 

“I’m pretty sure your gym teacher mentioned something about participation being a big part of your grade. Wouldn’t want you to fail, now would we blondie?”

 

“Niall. My name’s Niall.”

 

Harry smiles before coming to a sudden stop smack dab in the center of the gym. “Alright then _Niall_ , let’s see these supposed nonexistent dance skills of yours.”

 

Niall stares up at him blankly for a few second before blushing and realizing that oh wow, this guy is _actually_ serious about dancing with him.

 

His blush only deepens when they move at the same time, hands knocking into each other as both reach for the others waist. Harry reacts first, sighing in amusement before he raises his hand and places it on Niall’s shoulder. “I guess I’ll let you lead, even though you’re shorter than me.”

 

His other hand reaches for Niall’s and he curls their fingers together before giving Niall a push and mumbling “one…two…three…one…two…three” under his breath.

 

In the beginning, Niall’s feet stumble around a bit and he nearly trips a few times but Harry always catches him, tightening his grip and tugging him closer each time to keep him upright.

 

As they continue to dance, Niall’s so focused on his feet that he doesn’t notice how close they’ve gotten until he steps forward a half beat to quickly and bumps his nose into Harry’s chin.”

 

Jerking back quickly, he’s surprised to see Harry grinning down at him and even more baffled when he suddenly stops, catching Niall once again before he falls.

 

“Okay.” The taller boy murmurs, “I think you’ve got the basics down. Now, let’s see if we can speed up the tempo a bit.”

 

Niall can only stare as Harry grab his hand from his side and places it instead on his shoulder before he feels Harry’s own hand slide off his shoulder and down his spine until his palm is flat against the small of his back.

 

“I think I’ll lead for this one, yeah?”

 

Before Niall can respond, they’re gliding across the floor and Niall hates to admit it but their steps are a lot smoother when Harry’s leading.

 

He has to bite his lip to keep from smiling and is just mentally reminding himself of how bad of a dancer he is when Harry unexpectedly twirls him around before tugging him into his chest.

 

Niall feels his breath catch in his throat when he feels Harry gives his body a little push and he suddenly finds himself being dipped, his head tilted back and eyes staring up at the ceiling.

 

And it’s all so bizarre that Niall suddenly can’t control himself and starts laughing when Harry pulls him back up and spins him away.

 

But, it’s okay because Harry’s laughing too as they continue to glide around the now empty gym (because class is over and they were both too caught up in each other to notice that everyone left).

 

“I think you’ve seriously underestimated your dancing ability.” Harry whispers in his ear before twirling him for a second time.

 

Niall waits until they’re facing one another again before shaking his head and staring straight into the amused green eyes. “No, I think I just have a really great teacher.”

 

He snickers when Harry’s cheeks redden, but the taller boy just rolls his eyes and pulls him closer, letting his lips brush up against Niall’s cheek in response.

 

So instead of making fun of him, Niall sighs serenely before allowing his eyes to fall shut and thinks that maybe he doesn’t hate dancing as much as he thought he did.

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by all the videos and gifs of Niall and Harry dancing together.
> 
> Also on my tumblr:  
> http://narryblush.tumblr.com/post/53255661777/dirty-gym-floor-dancing


End file.
